BRUSSELS/JERUSALEM—The European Union has reiterated its position on building in Israeli communities in the West Bank after the announcement of the construction of over two thousand new homes.
Israel’s Defense Ministry last week authorized the construction of about around 2,200 homes. 82 homes are slated for approval to expand the settlement of Ofra, where a deadly terror attack last month left a newborn baby dead and seven others severely injured.
In a statement, an EU spokesperson said : ‘’The European Union’s position on Israeli settlement construction and related activities is clear and remains unchanged: all settlement activity is illegal under international law and it undermines the viability of the two-state solution and the prospects for a lasting peace.’’
France also condemned the Israeli decision. A foreign ministry spokesperson stated : “The settlements establishments do not correspond with UNSC resolution 2334. The settlements endanger the two-state solution, which is the only solution that would allow for peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians.”
France called on Israeli authorities ‘’to reconsider this decision.’’
About 430,000 Israelis live in communities in the West Bank.
On Thursday, Israeli police arrived at the outpost of Amona and began to forcefully remove several hundred Israelis, mostly youth, and the trailers they brought up to the hill.
Several violent scuffles have reportedly occurred during the evacuation, which included the forceful removal of protestors who have barricaded themselves inside the makeshift structures.
Amona, built in the 1990s and situated on the outskirts of Ofra in the Benyamin region, was evacuated and demolished in 2017 after a court ruled that the structures were situated on private Palestinian land.